Disappearing Land: 5 Pacific Islands No Longer Exist

East of Papua New Guinea lies the Solomon Islands, an archipelago of 900 islands best known for its alluring turquoise waters. However, as global warming creates a subtle changes in temperatures these tantalising waters have become a threat to the countries’ existence.

Photo: Flickr – ravilacoya

Temperature changes might not seem dramatic but over time people in the Solomon Islands are starting to see devastating results. Over the past seven decades, as our environment has been ravaged by humans overuse of resources, a total of five islands have been completely swallowed up by a steady rise in sea levels.

Photo: ABCnews

The most recent island to disappear occurred asrecently as 2011, meaning that if we keep treating the environment the way we have this island will be far from the last. In fact, six other larger islands have already lost upwards of 20% of their surface area, meaning that families have lost homes, and communities have been uprooted.

If things continue the capital city of Taro will need to be relocated. This would cost the Solomon Islands millions of dollars, severely impacting the development of the country.

We’ve been hearing the threat that places of low elevations may disappear if things don’t change for years. Predictions state that by 2100 the sea will most likely rise enough to wipe out the majority of cities on the east coast of The United States.

The alarming reality is that change needs to happen now. Places have already disappeared. More will go unless we look at the evidence right in front of us and stop thinking of losing our land as a mere threat.

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